Foldable panel assembly



J. c. WOOD ETAL 2,860,701

FOLDABLE PANEL ASSEMBLY Nov. 18, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 1'7, 1956 FIG. 2.

Lio/ JOHN CARTER WOOD,

RUSSELL S. HATCHER,JR.

ATTORNEYS Nov. 18, 1958 Filed Aug. 1'7, 1956 J. c. wooo ET AL 2,860,701

FOLDABLE PANEL ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IO FIG.5. a F1616- 2 2s v/'/6 Q IO 5 o g 7o '69 e 74 INVENTOR :53,

JOHN CARTER WOOD,

RUSSELL S. HMTCHER' JR.

Wnl ma /J ATTORNEYg United States Patent Ofihce 2,860,701 Patented Nov. 18, 1958 FOLDABLE PANEL ASSEMBLY John Carter Wood and Russell S. Hatcher, Jr., Amarillo, Tex., assignors to Maywood, Inc., Amarillo, Tex., a corporation of Texas Application August 17, 1956, Serial No. 604,706

2 Claims. (Cl. 160-199) This invention relates to folda'ble panel assemblies and more particularly to a foldable panel assembly of the type adapted to be utilized as a door, partition or the like.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a foldable panel assembly of the type adapted to be moved between an extended position and a retracted position having improved means for guiding the panels of the assembly between such positions.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a foldable panel assembly of the type described embodying a simple inexpensive construction for pivotally and slidably receiving the panels of the assembly and guiding the same between extended and retracted positions.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a panel assembly of the type described having improved means for guiding the same between extended and retracted positions, which guide means is arranged to permit the entire assembly to be readily mounted in and removed from its operative position.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a foldable panel assembly of the type embodying spring means'for detachably securing the assembly in its operative position.

Still another object of the present invention is the provision of a .foldable panel assemblywhich is simple in construction, easy to operate and economical to manufacture.

These and other objects of the invention will become more apparent during the course of the following detailed description and appended claims.

The invention may best be understood with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein an illustrative embodiment is shown.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the wall having a door opening therein provided with a foldable panel assembly embodying the principles of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the assembly shown in Figure 1 illustrating the foldable panel assembly in its retracted open position;

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 illustrating the assembly in an intermediate position;

Figure 4 is a view similar to FigureZ illustrating the assembly in its extended closed position; i a

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view illustrating sliding connections of the assembly;

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view illustrating the stationary pivots of the assembly;

Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 7-7 of Figure 6; and

Figure 8 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view illustrating a modified form of the bottomstationary pivot of the assembly.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, there is shown in Figure 1 a foldable panel assembly, generally indicated at 10, embodying the principles of the present invention. As shown, the assembly 10 is mounted within an opening 12 formed in a wall 14, the opening 12 being provided with the usual frame 16. While the assembly 10 is shown as being utilized as a closure for a wall opening, it will be understood that the principles of the present invention may be utilized in other arrangements. For example, a foldable panel assembly embodying the principles of the present invention could be readily utilized as a room partition.

Moreover, the assembly could be readily modified for use as a foldable window construction or the like. In the arrangement shown, the assembly includes right and left-hand sections, each of which includes an inner panel '18 and an outer panel 20. While each section is shown as including only two panels, it Will be appreciated that a greater number of panels may be utilized, if desired. The panels may be of any suitable type and, as shown, are of conventional door construction embodying the usual peripheral frame arranged to receive interior panel sections of Wood or the like. The upper panel section may be louvered or of sheet material as is well known in the art. The inner and outer panels of each section are pivotally interconnected along adjacent vertical edges, as by hinges 22 of any suitable construction, such as piano hinges, strap hinges or the like. In order to mount each section of the assembly within the door frame 12 for movement between a closed extended position and an open retracted position, there is provided a lower track 24 suitably mounted on the floor of the room and an upper track 26 suitably mounted on the horizontal member of the door frame 16. As best shown in Figure 5, the tracks 24 and 26 may be of identical construction and preferably are formed of extruded aluminum. Each track includes a centrally disposed U-shaped Wall 28 defining a longitudinally extending groove 30. Extending fromthe free ends of the legs of the U-shaped wall 28 are exterior curved walls 32 and 34 having their free ends disposed in the same plane as the bight of the U-shaped wall 28. The wall 34 may be provided with suitable openings 36 for receiving fastening elements, such as screws 38 or the like, which are utilized to secure the tracks in position.

The inner panel 18 of each section of the assembly is mounted within the tracks for pivotal movement about a stationary pivotal axis. As best shown in. Figure 6, the lower surface of each inner panel 18 adjacent the door frame 16 has a substantially rectangular plate 40 of metal or other suitable material secured to the central portion thereof, as by screws 42 or the like. The plate 40 is provided with a central aperture 44 which is arranged to receive the head of a rivet or bolt 46, the shank of which extends downwardly'therethrough. A cylindrical guide element 48 having a radially extending peripheral flange 50 at its upper end is mounted on the downwardly extending end of the rivet 46. Preferably, the lower ex-;

tremity of the rivet 46 may be deformed around the lower. end of the guide element 48 so as to retain the same thereon. This'connection of the rivet withthe guide element rigidly secured the same to the panel 18 for movement therewith. That is, the guide element 48 is not rotatably mounted on the rivet 46. As best shown in Figure 7, the U-shaped wall 28 of the lower track 24 is formed with a bore 52 which preferably extends only partially therethrough and which bridges the groove 30 formed thereby. Mounted within the bore 52 is a bearing element 54 having a radially extending upper flange 56. Preferably, the bearing element 54 is'inserted into the bore 52 with some pressure so as to insure a tight fit therein and is arranged to receive the guide element 48. In this manner, the lower end of each inner panel 18 is pivotally mounted within the track 24.

The upper end of each inner panel 18 has a substantially rectangular plate 58 secured to the central portion thereof, as by screws 60. The plate 58 includes a central aperture 62 and a sleeve 64 is rigidly secured to the lower surface of the plate 58 in surrounding relation to the aperture 64. The upper end of the inner panel 18 is provided with a vertical bore 66 for receiving the sleeve 64. The latter slidably receive a rivet or bolt '68 having its head arranged to engage the lower end of the sleeve and its shank extending upwardly therethrough. The upper reduced end of the rivet 68 is provided with a guide element 70, similar to the guide element 48, and having a lower radially extending flange 72. A coil spring 74 is mounted in surrounding relation to the rivet 68 between the flange 72 and the plate 58 and serves to resiliently urge the guide element upwardly into a limiting position wherein the head of the rivet engages the lower end of the sleeve 64. It will be understood, however, that the guide element 70 carried by the rivet may be moved downwardly with respect to the sleeve 64 against the action of the spring 74.

The guide element 70 seats within a bearing element 76, similar to the bearing element 54, and having a lower radially extending flange 78 which abuts the flange 72. It will be understood that the bearing elements 76 and 54 are mounted on the same vertical axis so as to enable each inner panel 18 to be pivoted thereabout.

The outer end of each outer panel 20 is slidably mounted within the tracks 24 and 26. As best shown in Figure 5, the lower end of each outer panel 20 is provided with guide means constructed similar to the means previously disclosed in connection with the bottom of the inner panels 18. Briefly, the guide means includes a plate 80 suitably secured to the central portion of the lower surface of the panel, as by screws or the like (not shown). The plate 80 includes a central opening 82 which receives the head of a rivet 04, the shank of which extends downwardly therethrough. The lower extremity of the rivet is deformed around the lower end of a guide element 86 having an upwardly extending radial flange 88. The guide element 86 extends within the groove 30 formed by the U-shaped portion of the track 24 with the flange 88 thereof resting on the upper adjacent surfaces of the walls 32 and 34. As best shown in Figure 5, the walls 32 and 34 may be provided with inwardly extending lips 90 and 92 which engage the cylindrical exterior surface of the guide element so as to provide less contact surface therewith, and, hence, reduce the frictional contact of the guide element as it moves within the track 24. In a like manner, the upper end of each outer panel 20 is provided with guide means constructed in the same manner as the guide means on the upper end of each inner panel 18. This guide means includes a rectangular plate 94 suitably mounted in the central portion of the panel end, as by screws or the like (not shown). The plate 94 includes a central opening 96 having a sleeve 98 secured to the undersurface of the plate in surrounding relation therewith. A rivet or bolt 100 extends upwardly through the sleeve and opening 98 and has a guide element 102 secured to the upper end thereof. The guide element 102 includes a lower radially extending flange 104 which engages the upper end of a coil spring 106 surrounding the rivet 100 and having its lower end engaged with the upper surface of the plate 94. The guide element 102 extends within the groove 30 of the upper track 26 with the flange 104 thereof spring-pressed into engagement with the adjacent walls 32 and 34. As before, the track includes inwardly extending lips 92 and 90 which engage the cylindrical surface of the guide element for substantial line contact.

A significant feature of the foldable panel assembly of the present invention is that the resilient slidably mounted upper guide elements 70 and 102 enable each section of the same to be readily mounted in operative position once the upper and lower tracks 24 and 26 have been secured in place. All that is necessary is to form 4 the bores 52 and press-fit the bearing elements 54 and 76 therein. Next, the upper guide element 70 is fed into the bearing element 76 and the upper guide element 102 is fed within the groove 30. An upward movement of the entire assembly section will compress the springs .74 and 106 permitting the lower guide elements 70 and 86 to be readily engaged within bearing element 54 and groove 30of the lower track, respectively. The springs 74 and 106 are operable to maintain all of the guide elements in their proper relation and are sufficiently strong to prevent wobble of the panels or other loose fitting thereof.

In its closed extended position, as shown in Figures 1 and 4-, the panels 18 and '20 of each section of the assembly are disposed in vertical alignment with the outer guide elements 86 and 102 in their outermost position within the tracks 24 and 26. When it is desired to open the panel assembly, the same is moved from the closed extended position shown in Figure 4 through an intermediate position, such as shown in Figure 3, and into the open retracted position shown in Figure 2. It will be noted that during this movement the inner panel 18-0f each section will simply pivot within the stationarily mounted bearing elements 54 and 56, while the outer panel 20 of each section is guided for movement therewith by the action of the hinges 22 and the guide elements 86 and 102. The guide elements 86 and 102 slide within the grooves 30 of their respective tracks so that the outer end of the panels 20 move inwardly toward the stationary pivots of the inner panels.

While the assembly 10 is disclosed above as being mounted within upper and lower tracks for use as a wall opening closure, it will be apparent that the same may also be utilized as a room partition or the like. In such use, the provision of a lower track on the room floor may be dispensed with so that the lower end of the outer panel is free of guided movement. However, the inner section is pivotally mounted on suitable means, such as a simple pivot block 108, as shown in Figure 8. The block 108 is secured to the floor, as by screws 110 or the like, and includes a central bore 112 arranged to receive the lower guide element 48 The foldable panel assembly of the present invention is of simple construction and may be economically manufactured both from a standpoint of obtaining the parts and assembling the same. The guide elements 48, 70, 86 and 102 of the assembly are preferably of nylon or other similar material having self-lublicating properties. The use of nylon is greatly preferred since it can be economically obtained and has excellent anti-friction and wearing properties. The stationary bearing elements 54 and 56 are preferably of aluminum as are the tracks 24 and 26. The plates 40, 58, and 94 may be of steel or other suitable material as well as the sleeves 64 and 98. The springs 74 and 106 are also of conventional construction and, hence, readily obtainable. Moreover, the rivets of the assembly,'such as rivets 64, 68, 84 and 100, not only are easily obtained, but render the assembly easier to put together. It will be apparent that all of the guide elements may be of identical construction further serving to render the assembly more economical. Likewise, the tracks 24 and 26 may be identical and by virtue of the bearing element arrangement, either a sliding-connection or a stationary pivot may be provided merely by the expedient of boring the tracks and inserting the bearing elements or omitting the same.

It thus will be seen that the objects of this invention have been fully and effectively accomplished. It will be realized, however, that the foregoing specific embodiment has been shown and described only for the purpose of illustrating the principles of this invention and is subject to extensive change without departure from such principles. Thehefore, this invention includes all modifications encompassed within the spirit and scope of the following claims.

We claim:

1. A foldable panel assembly comprising vertically spaced parallel tracks each having a horizontal longitudinally extending groove formed therein, enlarged axially aligned vertical bores formed in said tracks with their common axis disposed in a plane passing longitudinally through said grooves, axially aligned cylindrical bearing elements having exterior surfaces of greater transverse dimension than the width of said grooves fixedly extending in said bores therein, a first panel having a first pair of axially aligned cylindrical guide elements carried on opposite ends thereof and mounted within said bearing elements for rotation about the fixed axis thereof, a second panel having an edge portion hinged to an edge portion of said first panel for pivotal movement about an axis parallel to said fixed axis, a second pair of axially aligned cylindrical guide elements carried on opposite ends of said second panel and slidably mounted Within the track grooves, and means mounting one of the guide elements of each pair for resiliently biased axial sliding movement away from the associated panel and for inward sliding movement against such resilient biasing, said mounting means for each of said one element including a plate secured to the central portion of the associated panel end and having a central opening therein, a sleeve secured to said plate in surrounding relation to said opening and extending inwardly therefrom, a rivet having a head disposed inwardly of said sleeve and a shank extending outwardly through said sleeve and said plate opening, the outer end portion of said shank being reduced in diameter so as to form on outwardly facing shoulder, said reduced outer end portion extending through the associated guide element with said shoulder engaging the inner end thereof and the outer extremity of said reduced end portion deformed into engagement with the outer end thereof, and a coil spring disposed in surrounding relation to the rivet shank between the inner end of the guide element and said plate.

2. A foldable panel assembly comprising vertically spaced parallel tracks each having a horizontal longitudinally extending groove formed therein, enlarged axially aligned vertical bores formed in said tracks with their common axis disposed in a plane passing longitudinally through said grooves, axially aligned cylindrical bearing elements having exterior surfaces of greater transverse dimension than the Width of said grooves fixedly extending in said bores therein, a first panel having a first pair of axially aligned cylindrical guide elements carried on opposite ends thereof and mounted within said bearing elements for rotation about the fixed axis thereof, a second panel having an edge portion hinged to an edge portion of said first panel for pivotal movement about an axis parallel to said fixed axis, a second pair of axially aligned cylindrical guide elements carried on opposite ends of said second panel and slidably mounted Within the track grooves, means mounting one of the guide elements of each pair for resiliently biased axial sliding movement away from the associated panel and for inward sliding movement against such resilient biasing and means mounting the other guide element of each pair on the associated panel, said mounting means for each of said other elements including a plate secured to the central portion of the associated panel end and having a central aperture therein, a rivet having a head disposed in said aperture and a shank extending outwardly therefrom through the associated guide element, said. shank having an outer end deformed into engagement with the associated end of the guide element so as to fixedly retain the latter on said rivet in engagement between the deformed end thereof and said plate.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,245,042 Schoening et a1 Oct. 30, 1917 1,448,845 Johnson et al. Mar. 20, 1923 1,612,498 Smith Dec. 28, 1926 2,607,962 Baumann Aug. 26, 1952 2,713,899 Holloway July 26, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 308,540 Great Britain Mar. 28, 1929 687,805 Great Britain Feb. 18, 1953 

